John Cale - Nico - Dance Music (1998)

Dance Music is John Cale's score to Ed Wubbe's ballet Nico, a dance evocation of the model-turned-singer who, along with Cale, was an early member of the Velvet Underground. In his brief liner notes, Cale disavows any intention to convey his impressions of Nico's life in the music, yet speaks of wanting to "throw some light on what elements of Nico's psyche drove a woman so successfully captured by the world of Modeling, to abandon it to pursue a creative life in poetry and song." He acknowledges, however, that this is music for "an abstract concept," and while it tells nothing directly about Nico, it is a typically eclectic, challenging piece of John Cale music. It was performed by Ice Nine, a nine-piece group combining five strings (three of them violas, Cale's instrument) with an electrified percussion section, at a live performance. On disc, it displays a variety of colors and moods, ranging from pop to more classical styles, and often reveals a spare beauty. It contains a few snippets of Nico speaking and ends with the a cappella track "Nibelungen" from her Cale-produced solo album The Marble Index, but otherwise shows no obvious connection to her.